Yachts new target in Gib row

Yachtsmen are the latest target of politically-motivated policemen as the row between Spain and the UK hots up over Gibraltar. Fourteen yachts have been forced to clear out of the Le Linea Bay anchorage near the Rock.

They include Dave and Lynette Hardy chartering their 2006 Jeanneau 54DS. Dave told YM: ‘We got told to leave by the local guardia which is all part of the increasing Gibraltar/Spanish tensions. We have moved up the coast to Almeria. We are no longer based in Gibraltar.’

T-shirts that proclaim Spain’s sovereignty over Gibraltar, which was ceded to Britain 300 years ago, are being sold on eBay for motor-bikers to wear on a planned protest day for 21 September.

The Royal Gibraltar Police said it would stop any bikers who arrived at the frontier from crossing to avoid breaches of the peace. The force tweeted: ‘A FB (Facebook) site ‘Marcha de Moteros’ in Gib in support of fishermen is making people anxious. Rest assured such demo will be stopped at frontier.’

Last week Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain “will always stand up for Gibraltar” and its people, as he held talks with Fabian Picardo, its chief minister, at Downing Street.

The meeting to discuss the ongoing border dispute with Spain came as Spanish police unions organised a protest at the border over injuries reportedly inflicted on a Guardia Civil officer by a Gibraltar-registered car.

There have been reports of increasing violence at the border in recent days as angry commuters face long queues to get to homes in Andalusia.

Spain imposed strict checks on traffic at the border with Gibraltar in protest at the creation of an artificial reef. The Spanish say the 74 concrete blocks on the seabed disrupt an area used by its fishing boats, while the Gibraltarians say it was a necessary environmental measure. The row has gone all the way to the European Commission and continued to simmer.

There have been claims of missiles being thrown at Spanish border police and two unions organised a protest last Friday after reports a Guardia Civil officer was injured by a Gibraltar-registered car that failed to stop.